Greatest Award-Winning Outdoor Toys For Your Little Adventurers!

I’ve collected a list of the best “Toy of the Year” industry-leading outdoor toys from the past five years, so you’ll know exactly what the cool kids are playing with from the back yard, to the driveway and beyond. They kids will have fun while getting some fresh air, so these goodies are a win-win for everyone!

Easily the coolest toy on the list, bar-none, The Original Big Wheel is the ultimate kid-friendly mode of transportation. I had a Big Wheel growing up, and I’m happy to see the monster back in all of its hard plastic glory. This glorious plastic device is the epitome of a small child’s unmentioned mantra of “Who cares if I can’t ride a two-wheeled bike? Check out my awesome Big Wheel!”, and it’s a nice bonus that the latest models are available in both classic red and a modern pink variant too, but I could’ve sworn that I had a blue one when I was a kid… They look cool, they’re easy to ride and they’re affordable. What’s not to love?

This one caught me off guard, and I can’t believe that something like this wasn’t around when I was a kid! The Rockboard Scooter Mini is an aluminum combination scooter that can work like a classic kick-off-the-ground scooter, or by standing in place and rocking your legs back and forth to propel the scooter forward with “kid power.” I wasn’t a scooter fan when I was a kid because I never really liked the “kick powered” design, even with the handlebars as stability, but if I could deliver one of these to myself in the 90’s, I’d have kicked off my razorblades and rocked myself all over the neighborhood. If you know a kid that has an aversion to scooters, the Rockboard Scooter Mini might just win them over!

What happens when the two greatest toy blasters in the world come together? Apparently you get the NERF Super Soaker Shot Blast! The immediate thought that I had when I saw this water gun is that it was modeled after a modern NERF-styled blaster, but beauty can only get this toy so far- The real beauty behind the Shot Blast is that it’s the biggest NERF Super Soaker in its collection, it holds a ton of water (less time getting refills from the hose), and it lives up to its name by blasting a thick stream of water up to 25 feet away. Personally? I really like how NERF went above and beyond to make this toy look like a colorful and visually distinct videogame weapon. It definitely looks better than those bubble-like Super Soakers that I grew up with!

Even though I wasn’t into traditional scooters, I might have appreciated My First Scooter’s three wheeled design. This scooter really is for children who want to ride a scooter “like the big kids,” and with its wide base, tripod shape and stable rear foot brake, they’ll learn the ropes while playing it safe. If you’ve got a child who’s getting to that age where they want to (slowly and clumsily) tear up the sidewalk, I hope that they like red or pink! Seriously, where are the “Cookie Monster Blue”, “Pikachu Yellow” and “Neon Incredible Hulk” colors?

Ick. Although I indifferent of scooters and more of a “bike-kid,” I disliked using sidewalk chalk. Some people don’t like crunching ice, some cringe at the sound of knuckles cracking, I can’t stand the feeling of chalk on my fingers or fingernails. Don’t get me wrong, I still drew dinosaurs, monsters, sharks and all kinds of other cool stuff on the driveway when I was a kid, but my slight discomfort was worth the pink T-Rexes and orange stegosauruses that I’d doodle on the concrete out front. Crayola’s 3D Sidewalk Chalk might just be the biggest innovation of the classic art toy, as I know that seeing my beasts and ghoulies stand apart from the sidewalks would’ve been extra incentive to stay outside drawing, and with the inclusion of five two-toned chalk pieces for a total of ten colors, I’d have had a whole rainbow of cool dinosaurs to gawk at. It’s a great toy for kids who already view the world as their canvas, but the 3D goggles are sure to lure in kids who haven’t been acquainted with the vibrant and dusty medium.

If any of these toys tickle your fancy, just skip the lines and the hassle- All of these goodies can be shipped right to your door via Amazon. I’d use the gas money that you saved on more toys, but that’s just me. Which of these outdoor toys is your favorite? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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